Board of Education members heard reports from ongoing programs and successes and future plans for agriculture facilities and mechanics lab at their February meeting.
Perhaps the biggest news is the Jones County High School graduation will take place on Greyhound Field this year.
Qualifying for the May 19 election for Board of Education Chairman, District 1 and District 3 positions take place next week. Qualifying will take place at the Jones County Elections Office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 2-5 and 9 a.m. to noon March 6.
Board of Education members heard reports from ongoing programs and successes and future plans for agriculture facilities and mechanics lab at their Board Chairman Ginger Bailey called the Feb. 10 meeting to order and talked about bills being considered in the state legislature that could affect education.
Board member Brady Skinner used his report opportunity to talk about a social media post questioning the use of a school system facility. He stated that it is school district policy to request the use of a school facility from the principal of the school.
“It needs to be done right. We need to follow the rules,” he said.
“If you have questions about the use of a facility, contact the school principal.”
In her report, School Superintendent Dr. Jessica Graves said she met with the Gray Downtown Development Authority and took her position as a member of the Jones County Library Board of Trustees.
She said Feb. 9 she attended the recognitions of the Jones County High School STAR Student and STAR Teacher at the Jones County Kiwanis Club.
The superintendent said the district administration team met and discussed increasing communications and is focusing on hiring policies.
“We need to make sure it is done correctly,” she said.
Graves said she is working with the certified enrollment committee to make sure the process to enroll is streamlined.
“Central office is the gatekeeper. The first step is requiring a residency affidavit next year,” she said.
She went on to say the school system needs to be transparent and equitable when considering the option for school choice. That includes tuition and a contract.
“The residents of Jones County will always have first choice,” Graves added.
Bailey commented that a law was passed last year requiring systems to accept non-residents.
She reiterated that Jones County students would always come first.
Information session
Gray Elementary School physical education teacher Angela Watts shared information about the All Kids Bike program at the school. She said they filled out paperwork for the program and it was fully funded by the Arthur M. Blank Foundation.
That included 24 Strider bicycles, helmets and two racks. She said the bikes were assembled by football players, and the program is for students in kindergarten through fifth grade. The mission of the program is to teach all kids how to ride bicycles.
Watts said the next program she’s looking at is roller blading.
She said students are currently participating in the Heart Challenge and sport stacking competitions.
Graves said one of the big values in these programs is students wanting to come to school.
Crystal Burt talked about plans for JCHS graduation. The date for graduation is May 15, and the start time 7:30 p.m. She said all students will receive 10 tickets, which will include two priority tickets.
Graduates will receive the tickets at the final program rehearsal.
The rain date for the program is May 16, and if that doesn’t work, graduation will be held in the JCHC gym. That is when the priority tickets will be used.
Burt explained the program start time is due to the time the sun sets behind the stands. She said there will be a shuttle from the Pre-K, and graphics will show people where to park.
The entire program will be live streamed by the JCHS AV class, and the ROTC will take care of parking and logistics.
The speaker said moving graduation back home allows the community to be involved in celebrating the graduates.
College and Career Academy CEO and CTAE Executive Director Lisa Collins and JCSS Maintenance Director Joe Evans presented information about the CRE Grant for Agriculture Program. She stated that the graduation rate for students in the programs is 96 percent.
She celebrated outstanding students Carson Green and Javian Gibson.
Evans said the grant funds will be used for a small animal and science barn and an agriculture mechanics classroom and lab.
He said the barn would be 48x30 with a show area in the center.
The director said the barn will be in the lower pasture.
Ag teacher Callie Lankford said the sheep were her idea and started with 10 students showing lambs. Last year there were 30 lambs.
Evans said the Ag Mechanic Classroom and Lab is a great opportunity for the community.
He said different facets of it would help meet small employer needs.
Ag mechanics teacher Justin Martin talked about the high demand careers of woodworking, electrical, welding and metal fabrication taught in the program.
Several spoke in favor of the programs, including students.
One of the big selling points of the programs was improved safety.
Collins said the $108,000 in the grant can be used to purchase equipment. One of the requirements of the grant is the district covers the cost of construction. Board approval is needed to apply.
Graves made the recommendation to approve the application, and Skinner made the motion that passed with a unanimous vote.
Finance report
JCCS CFO Tonya Merritt reported that the period ending Jan. 31 represented 58.33 percent of the school year.
Total revenues were $43,155,133 and expenditures $39,566,983. The ending cash balance Jan. 31 was $28,630,063. After highlighting the largest departments and government accounts, Merritt concluded with the Education Special Local Option Sales Tax collections report. She said $329,562 was collected in January, bringing the average monthly collections $336,106.
Action items
Graves recommended approval of contracts that were each approved by board members.
Only one of the approvals was not unanimous. That item dealt with the purchase of Chromebooks and licenses, and Skinner opposed the motion.
The motion did pass with a vote of 4-1.
• ContractwithCDW Government to purchase 104 HP Fortis G10 Chromebooks and licenses for Dames Ferry Elementary under the Sourcewell contract.
Estimated cost $26,930 utilizing funds from Title 1.
• ContractwithLakeshore Learning Materials to purchase classroom furniture and supplies for 10 classrooms at Jones County Pre-K under contract with Omnia Racine.
Estimated cost $128,742 utilizing funds from Georgia Pre-K reimbursement grant.
• Purchaseoftwowaterheaters from Greene & Associates for Gray Middle School kitchen at estimated cost of $40,208 utilizing funds from Maintenance and Operations budget.
• ContractwithSheridan Construction to purchase professional services for JCHS additions and renovation project. Estimated cost $206,005 utilizing funds from 2024 SPLOST.
• ContractwithHarrisSchool Solutions to renew NextGen accounting, payroll software and employee self-service portal. Estimated cost $33,597 utilizing funds from business administration budget.
• ContractwithAiOSGroup to purchase IDF upgrades and ADDS for GSMS upon approval of ERATE application for estimated cost $8,496 utilizing fund from the technology budget.
• ContractwithAiOSGroup to purchase wireless services for the JCSS upon approval of the ERATE application with $70,355 for eligible ERATE schools and $35,194 for ineligible ERATE schools for an estimated cost of $105,550 utilizing funds from the technology budget.
• ContractwithAtlantaAccess Controls to purchase access controls and installation services for the lobby doors of Dames Ferry Middle, Gray Elementary and Mattie Wells Elementary. Estimated cost $19,372 utilizing funds from state QBE Security Funds.
Following the vote for the last action item, the meeting was adjourned to enter closed session. The next board meeting is scheduled at 6 p.m. March 10 with a work session scheduled at 5 p.m. March 5. Board meetings are available to view on the Jones County Schools website jones. k12.ga.us under the About Us tab.
